Friday, July 19, 2013

Social Media Fantasies! #amwriting #socialmedia

When
I wrote my first novel, the need to promote it myself never entered into my expectations.

Not
once!

That
was a job for someone else. Someone with the education and knowledge needed to circumvent the
web of social media madness. Certainly, any publisher I would contract with would
have that part of the process covered. The thought that I would eventually take
on the challenge myself, and even like it, was unthinkable.

Not
today! Today it’s all part of my job. A huge part! In fact, I get so immersed
in all the promotional chores that fill up my day to where I don’t believe that
time can fly by so quickly. They’re never-ending, time-consuming, frustrating
and more challenging than anything else I’ve ever tackled. Plus, the competition
is fierce. As an author, I can tell you that our arena is filled to the brim with
more new products being made available every day. And, let’s face it; we’re all
after the same buck.

From
the beginning of my career in 2007, I’ve gained an unbelievable amount of proficiency
in these ever-changing promotional sites and found, mostly by trial and error, capabilities
and the information that makes life a lot easier. Heck, nowadays, I hardly ever
lose it, swear, chaw at my nails, bang my head on my desk…. My problem is virtually a lack of time. Like all authors, my job is to write books. It's what I do... excuse me... what I'm supposed to do.

Since
social media has been on my mind lately, I did some research as to what it would
take to have a career in Public Relations. Not surprising, I found that the bachelor
degree was popular and anyone going to college to gain these skills could help themselves and gain experience
by trying for a student job or internship with a company they might want to
work with later. Or they could volunteer in order to learn
the culture they would earn a living from once they graduate. (Hey, if any student
interested in volunteer work is reading this blog and would like to learn
how to promote books and build an author brand my e-mail is mimibarbour@hotmail.comJ Just sayin’… )

With
all the different Social Media options today, and more constantly coming on
board, most companies have no choice but to add these qualified people to their
staff. Public Relations, especially online, has taken on a huge prominence and
is constantly shifting and altering. So, you tell me, how can an amateur ever expect to keep up? (More on Public Relations next blog,)In case you always wanted to follow me on twitter, there's a little blue T on the top left hand side of the page you can click on....uhuh! Just thoughtI'd mention it.(grins!)